The Sealing Mistake That Can Wreck Your Ravioli And How To Avoid It

Making your own ravioli isn't difficult, but it does take some time. Between making pasta dough from scratch, letting it rest, rolling it out, filling the ravioli, and cutting it, the process makes the final product feel very special. The worst is going through all of these steps only to have your ravioli burst in the cooking water because they weren't sealed right. To get some insight into this culinary catastrophe, we spoke to Matteo Ronzio, co-owner of Real Italian Gusto, a restaurant and pizzeria just outside of Boston.

Ronzio and his team make fresh pasta every day at the restaurant, including plenty of ravioli. As to sealing them correctly, Ronzio told The Takeout: "Oftentimes, air is not properly removed when sealing the ravioli which can cause the ravioli to burst open when boiling in water. To properly remove air pockets, press around the filling with your finger or spatula to remove trapped air before sealing the [pasta]."

Matteo Ronzio goes on to explain some of the risks of not sealing your ravioli properly before cooking, noting that "the filling may leak out during boiling or water might seep in. This can cause the pasta to fall apart, dilute the filling, and compromise its texture, leaving you with soggy ravioli."

Despite this, homemade ravioli is arguably one of the simplest filled pastas to make, even for beginners, because it doesn't require any special cutting tools or folding techniques (unlike tortellini, a specialty of the Emilia-Romagna region). For extra security against water intrusion, you can also add some sealing liquid. Simply place your mound of filling on the pasta and brush a bit of water onto the sheet around it with your finger or a pastry brush. When you crimp the edges, the wet pasta will close better. While you can use a spoon and your finger to place your filling on your pasta, using a piping bag is so much easier and less messy — just be sure you're not cutting the tips wrong if you're making one from scratch.

Once your ravioli is cooked (hopefully perfectly intact due to your expert sealing skills), add some extra flavor and texture with a sauce. It can be everything from a simple browned butter with grated parmesan cheese to your favorite jarred sauce.